(MIAMI) – PEN America today condemns Florida International University’s decision to discipline seven students who silently protested during a campus event by wearing T-shirts reading “ICE OFF FIU.” According to WLRN, a public media station in South Florida, the university issued written reprimands and ordered the students to create videos explaining the university policies administrators said the students violated. University officials based the discipline on a campus policy restricting “expressive activities” indoors, even though public reporting indicates the protest remained peaceful and did not disrupt the event.
“A university should invite students to wrestle with difficult ideas, not punish students for peacefully expressing them,” said William Johnson, Director of PEN America Florida. “Higher education exists to cultivate curiosity, sharpen critical thinking, and prepare students for democratic life. Universities diminish that purpose when disciplinary policies transform peaceful expression into a punishable offense rather than an opportunity for dialogue. it. A silent protest that allows an event to continue while communicating a political viewpoint falls squarely within the protected tradition of campus free expression.”
PEN America Florida urges Florida International University to rescind the disciplinary sanctions and revise campus policies to protect peaceful expression while addressing genuine disruptions through narrowly tailored, viewpoint-neutral rules.
“Universities best serve students by fostering robust debate, protecting dissent, and defending every student’s right to participate in public discourse without fear of censorship or retaliation,” Johnson said. “As debates over immigration, public policy, and other contentious issues continue, colleges and universities must remain places where students can express ideas freely, challenge orthodoxies, and engage one another through open inquiry rather than fear of punishment.”
About PEN America
PEN America stands at the intersection of literature and human rights to protect free expression in the United States and worldwide. We champion the freedom to write, recognizing the power of the word to transform the world. Our mission is to unite writers and their allies to celebrate creative expression and defend the liberties that make it possible. Learn more at pen.org.
Contact: Malka Margolies, [email protected], 718-530-3582